The media advisor to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in Gaza, Adnan Abu Hasna, said that it is not permissible for any country in the world to declare one of the major United Nations organizations as a terrorist organization, stressing that it is a dangerous escalation and will have consequences.
Abu Hasna’s statements came during his talk to Tel Aviv Tribune after the Israeli Knesset (Parliament) approved, on Sunday, a preliminary reading of a draft law to sever relations with UNRWA and declare it a terrorist organization.
Abu Hasna pointed out that UNRWA is an organization established by a decision of the United Nations General Assembly, and authorized to care for the affairs of the Palestinians in education, health, relief and employment until the issue of the Palestinian refugees is resolved justly and comprehensively.
He described the Israeli move as a dangerous, incomprehensible and unprecedented escalation in the history of mankind and all those who believe in international humanitarian law and the international system.
The Israeli classification also enters into dangerous contexts – according to Abu Hasna – who at the same time wondered about how to classify an international organization as a “terrorist” and what the consequences of that would be.
He warned that the general trend is very dangerous against the Palestinian refugees and their interests, and also against the international system and the embodiment of the will of the international community and the international will.
He pointed out that all countries that suspended their funding to UNRWA – months ago – returned to funding again, with the exception of the United States and Britain, noting that UNRWA is considered the pride of humanitarian work worldwide.
It should be noted that the Knesset’s move came after most Western countries backed off from cutting funding to UNRWA after Israel failed to prove its allegations of the agency’s employees’ participation in the Al-Aqsa Flood operation on October 7.
UNRWA was established on December 8, 1949, and has two main headquarters, one in Vienna and the other in Amman, in addition to representations in New York, Washington, Cairo, and occupied Jerusalem, and provides its services to about 5.9 million Palestinians.